Crazy Woman
by Titania Le Fey
Summary: Snake and Texas Mike return to Texas after the debacle in Cleveland to discover something terrible waiting for Mike at home.


Snake followed Texas Mike to the house. After Cleveland they'd had to skirt around and put off returning to his family. Snake didn't have the same attachments but he could understand. He knew his life wasn't meant for what Mike had.

"Daddy!"

Snake smiled when he saw Tina. He'd met her a few times now. She was cute and curious, always pestering Snake. He didn't mind. She was a good distraction in this world and Snake knew what she meant to his partner. Plissken stood back though when father and daughter reunited. He was an outsider when it came down to it.

"Where's your momma?" Texas Mike's voice filled the small house in a way that caused Snake's skin to crawl. This was too quiet for a family house.

"In the bedroom."

"You stay here and visit with Snake, pumpkin." Mike kissed the little girl and gave her a encouraging push toward Plissken.

Snake moved over and lowered himself painfully to the couch. Even after two weeks the gunshot was still unbearable. He was sure that he understood why Mike wanted a few moments alone with his wife after a month away. Tina crawled up next to Snake staring at him from big emerald eyes.

"You got an ouchie." She pointed at the wrapping around his stomach.

"Yeah." Snake bit back the mean tone that the pain usually caused. Adults would get the full brunt of it but she was just a kid.

"What happen'd Snake?"

"Cops shot me." Snake wasn't going to lie for her benefit. Snake heard the rukus in the other room and chuckled a bit to himself. If he had to guess he might imagine Mike had left him to babysit so he could give his wife a proper hello.

"That's not nice." Tina snuggled up against his side and laid her head on his arm.

Snake looked away trying to ignore her. "No."

The commotion in the other room got worse. Then the door slammed causing Tina to jump just as much as he had.

"Snake!"

He looked up as soon as Mike's frantic words registered. He had a hold of his arm. Blood bubbled up around the fingers. Plissken was on his feet wary as a caged cat.

"What the hell!" It was all Snake could think to say. Mike was taller than Plissken giving the whole situation a surreal aspect.

"She bit me."

Who hadn't even entered Snake's mind yet as he looked between the panicked man and his equally hysterical daughter.

"A towel." Snake motioned for Tina to go into the bathroom.

"Who?" Plissken couldn't follow though the madness.

"Veronica."

Snake jumped when he heard Mike's wife's name as the biter. That didn't make any sense, none at all. Plissken managed to remain calm.

"Tina, I need you to help your dad hold the towel tight here." Snake indicated Mike's arm. "I'm going to talk to her."

Snake took a deep breath and headed for the door. The blood around the handle where Mike must have pulled it closed gave the whole scene a freakish feel. It seemed like a scene from a horror movie. Idly he wondered if it was a bad idea to open the door before reaching to the handle. The blood was cooling and sticky. Snake's face curled at the feeling of icky grime as he turned the handle.

The room was dark inside. The stillness cause Plissken to bristle as groped for the light switch. The room exploded with light. His own eye flinched but he caught sight of Veronica and the blood on her face before she threw her hands up. The high pitched bellow from her caused pain to shoot through Plissken's bad eye before he slammed the door shut. All he could do was lean there against the wood listening to the maddening cries.

They had to stop, the cries were going to take Plissken's consciousness from the pain. In a flurry of movement he opened the door and flicked off the light. The screaming subsided leaving Plissken's head to clear. Tina and Mike were both there waiting and watching him. He knew what was wrong with her.

"Mike." Snake started walking toward them. "She's gone."

The look in his friend's eyes was something he just couldn't place. Pain, fear, anger, there was just too much to discern any one emotion.

"Shit what are we going to do?" Mike seemed to crumble. Plissken wanted to be angry but he understood enough from a memory long ago.

Plissken couldn't say what he thought should be done. She had been a friend. She was his only friend's wife and her daughter was here in the room. What needed to be done was not something that even Snake could speak out loud. There wasn't enough cold detachment in him to say she needed to be killed.

"Is there any time left for her?"

O'Shay was grasping for something. Plissken shrugged. He wasn't certain about how the gas proceeded from humanity to madness. All he knew for certain was that it happened.

"She needs fed." The words came out like one might expect from a zookeeper. His own tone caused a bile taste in his throat. Was she still a woman? Snake had no answers and he hated feeling like this.

"Tina, pumpkin, will you go make momma a sandwich?"

Snake watched Mike's daughter knowing that this meant it was time to get down to business. This wasn't a talk he was looking forward too and even less the outcome.

"Seriously Plissken, how long?"

Snake gave Texas Mike a nasty look for using that name but let it slide for now. "She's already gone."

Mike shook his head. Snake knew that look but it had to be done.

"Go feed her. Then you got to kill her." Snake hated saying it. "Put a bullet in her head when she falls asleep."

Mike shuffled off leaving Plissken to wonder if he'd understood. It was hard to say. Snake couldn't stay inside any longer and headed out to the front porch to keep watch and get away from the pressure and tension inside.

* * *


End file.
